Long Live
by KatieVA
Summary: Dean Winchester is popularity personified. Castiel Novak looks and acts like he stepped straight out of a weird comic book. Their worlds collide, and despite their differences, start tangling together. This is not a love story. This is a story about love. (High School AU)


Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with Supernatural, or any other public works mentioned in the story.

AN: This first chapter will switch a lot between Dean and Castiel. They will start to lengthen and come together in later chapters.

* * *

Dean Winchester; Independent, confident, gorgeous. Star sophomore at Lincoln High, popular with everyone. Quarterback, single and handsome, track team. Impulsive, obsessive, stubborn. He's privately bored of his life, bored of never finding anything challenging anymore. Nothing interesting him anymore.

Castiel Novak; Trustworthy, inventive, loyal. Sophomore, the schools biggest loser, in Dungeons and Dragons club, saving all his money for tickets to Comic Con each year. Short-tempered, unsure, anxious. He lives his life in dorky comic book t shirts and worn out converse, avoiding eye contact with anyone who passes by him, trying to fade into the background.

By chance, they meet, and their worlds collide in ways neither of them could ever have imagined.

This is not a love story. This is a story about love.

* * *

Soft mumbles escaped from his lips as he hummed along to the sound of Max Milner flowing out of his iPod. Head half buried in a battered copy of Inkheart, toes idly tapping, his free hand smoothing down the front of his Star Trek t-shirt, Castiel Novak looked every inch the typical high school dork.

And that, he thought to himself absentmindedly, was something he was well aware of and had no intention of changing. He knew he was unpopular, hated or just plain ignored by 95% of the population, but he'd rather be curled up alone with a good book and a cup of tea than charging down a football field, thank you very much. He glanced at his watch and sighed, pushing himself to his feet before making his way to his next class.

At that same moment, on the opposite side of the school, Dean Winchester was changing clothes after a particularly rigorous session of charging down a football field. The muscles on his back rippled as he tugged a plain white tee down over his body, eliciting a gasp from a gaggle of cheerleaders who had been peering through the door since the team had returned from practise. Trademark smirk dancing across his lips, Dean turned, winking at the girls as he grabbed his bag and wandered out into the hallway. _Girls are weird_ he thought silently to himself, grinning at the people who passed him by. Plenty of high fives were directed at him as he made his way to his Literature class, only a few were returned.

Castiel slid into his corner seat at the back silently, unnoticed by his classmates. Literature was his favourite class by far, his avid love for reading giving him a head start over most of the Neanderthals in the school. Mr Singer was a little gruff, but he was a good teacher, and nice enough if you made an effort. Today though, he seemed different, a mischievous smirk peeking through the beard. He brushed the thought off, slowly pulling his books out of his bag and placing them on his desk in a neat pile. "Listen up everyone!"

Castiel looked up and pushed his hair out of his eyes, curious at the expression on their teachers face.

"I'm going to do this quickly, seeing as most of you will want to stage a revolution when I'm done. Paired project. I pick the partners. No swapping. No complaining."

A loud groan echoed throughout the room, almost every student reflecting the general consensus to any pairing the teacher chose.

Castiel remained silent in his corner, unsure what to think. On one hand, he'd probably be paired with an imbecile who would make him do all the work himself. On the other hand, at least he'd actually have a partner for once, even if he didn't help at all. It's not like he couldn't handle a project on his own.

"You'll be paired up with someone you don't usually work with, and over the next twelve weeks I want you to produce three separate papers. You both need to pick a book, one of your favourite books, that the other person hasn't read before. The other person will read your book, and you will read theirs. You'll each write a paper on what you feel you've learnt about the other person by reading their favourite book. Then, you'll right the final paper together about the time you've spent together over this project, whether you feel any relationship has developed, whether you feel you know the person better than before. I want you to tell me about each other. I want you to get to know each other. Don't just read the books, spend time together, talk about what your reading."

Dean rolled his eyes and slumped down in his chair as Mr Singer started reeling off long pairs of names, pausing to allow a huff or sigh from each student.

"Kevin Tran and Lisa Braeden"

His expression darkened as he glared at them both. "Lucky bastard"

"Dean Winchester and Castiel Novak"

Dean looked up at his name, and frowned, a cloud of confusion taking root in his mind. "Who?"

Singer pointed to the back of a room at a hunched-over boy who was watching him with wide, nervous eyes, cheeks flushed red.

"Oh, okay." The kid looked smart, Dean mused. He could have done worse. Like that blonde kid who got Bela Talbot. Sneaky bitch. Dean wrinkled his nose as he thanked whatever deity watched over him that he hadn't got her. He'd hated her since she stole his Game Boy in second grade.

He ignored most of the rest of class, jumping up as soon as the bell rang, striding up to this 'Castiel' with a sigh.

"So, how are we going to do this? Can I come over to your place, tonight or something? Work on this report?"

His partner looked surprised, blue eyes widening as he floundered at the sudden approach. "U-um, sure…32 W-Wesson Road, c-come whenever you w-want"

Dean nodded and grinned, slapping the smaller boy on the shoulder. "Great, now uh, about your name. It's weird, and too long. I'mma call you Cas, okay? See you later, Cas."

Castiel watched in shocked surprise as the footballer strode away, disappearing out of the class quickly. That was the longest conversation he'd ever had with anybody at this school. Ever. Dean was like a whirlwind of confidence, carelessness and just plain…popularity. He was popularity personified. The thought of spending extended amounts of time with him made Castiel tremble. He was everything that Castiel wasn't, and he honestly had no idea how Mr Singer expected this arrangement to work.

Most of all, he was terrified for whatever monstrosity Winchester picked for him to read.


End file.
